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GROUP RIDING ETIQUETTE

Please review this information prior to the ride

Group riding requires an extreme level of awareness and concentration.  We appreciate your attention to these very important details.

RIDER RESPONSIBILITY

Your first priority must be safety. 

Know your limits and ride within them: never ride above your abilities:

• Mental, Physical, Motorcycle, Environment, Experience Level

Come to the ride prepared.

• Arrive with a full tank of gas and an empty bladder
• Bring appropriate riding gear for the expected range of conditions

Discipline is essential.  When riding in a group, you should maintain your relative position within the group unless doing so would compromise safety.  Randomly changing positions is a sign of an undisciplined rider. 

Trust your road captains and escorts.  They are skilled riders who will provide a short briefing prior to the start of the ride.   They will outline the route and establish the overall tone for the ride.  It is your responsibility to get any questions answered prior to putting on helmets.

Pay attention and don’t assume anything.  Losing focus for even a split second can result in chaos for you and the riders around you.  Be aware of your spacing behind the rider in front of you and you must know your own reaction time and stopping capability. 

Never assume the rider in front of you will continue at his/her current pace and never look away for any longer than an instant.

When accelerating from a stop, especially in conjunction with a turn, don’t assume the rider in front will continue to accelerate just because his brake light went out and he/she started to roll.  The rider could subsequently see something that causes him/her to stop while you are looking over your shoulder for traffic and cause you to run into the rider.

Please refrain from popping wheelies and doing stunts during the ride.  While it may be fun to display your skills when you’re alone, it can create safety hazards within the confines of group riding.

Please refrain from using foul language when we interact in public places – such as at the sponsoring dealers and gas stations.  This diminishes the respect for the organization and individuals involved in the planning of the charity event.  In addition, it reinforces the often negative public opinion of motorcyclists.

STAGGERED FORMATION

People who ride in a group generally appreciate knowing what is expected of them and what they can expect of others riding in such close proximity to them.

Riders will be expected to maintain a staggered formation whenever possible.  This is a formation in which the lead bike rides in the left slot of a lane, the next bike in the right slot, the next ride in the left slot and so on.   You should never pass the bike in front of you.  This is a key component to safe and effective riding in the staggered formation.  Your neighbors will appreciate you for respecting their space.

Riders will be expected to maintain a minimum interval of 4 seconds travel time between each bike in the same slot and two seconds travel time between each bike in the group. 

In a staggered formation, a rider still commands and may ride in the entire width of his/her lane as needed.   

Riding side by side is very dangerous and against the law in some states.  The only time bikes are to be side by side is when the group is stopped at an intersection - which isn't likely since road captains will be responsible for blocking traffic and getting the group through stop signs and stop lights safely.

GROUP RIDING MANEUVERS

ENTERING TRAFFIC

When the lead riders for each group sees that all riders are helmeted and sitting on their bikes with their engines running, he/she will check for traffic and enter the roadway. 

The lead riders will usually try to enter traffic at a time that all or most of the riders can follow immediately.  If the group is split, the lead riders will normally take the slow lane and keep the speed relatively low until the group can form up into the positions that they will keep for the duration of the ride.  This may mean traveling slower than surrounding traffic, to encourage cars to pass and to allow the group to form. 

Once all the members of the group are together, the group will take up a staggered formation and will stay that way for most of the ride, unless the lead riders signal for a change or the need for a change is obvious. 

When a group of motorcycles is changing lanes, many safety considerations come into play.  Should every rider move into the adjacent lane at the same time?  In regular traffic conditions, this is virtually impossible.

Should the lead rider go first or should the drag rider (tail end) go first to secure the lane?

Lane change maneuvers will be dictated by how the surrounding traffic is moving at the time.  The goal for the rider who moves first is to create a gap into which the other riders can fit.   After that, it is important that each rider make a swift and safe lane change – being mindful of the other riders in front and behind him/her.

Regardless of what the lead riders do, each rider is responsible for his/her own safety at all times.  You must safely ride your own bike at your skill level and within the confines of a group setting.

TAKING CURVES

As a group we will take curves in a single file line.  This will give everyone the opportunity to corner and take curves at his/her own speed with as much room as he/she may need.

This is especially important to riders with little experience in group settings.  Regardless of experience level, no one feels comfortable taking curves with another rider on their side or riding too close behind them.

HAND SIGNALS

Turn signals on the bikes ahead will usually advise a rider that a turn is coming up.  However, there are hand signals that are equally important.

Slow down – left arm is held out straight, then goes up and down

Single file formation – index finger points to the sky on top of the helmet

Speed up or close ranks in formation – left arm makes ‘windmill’ sign

Staggered formation – index finger and little finger point to the sky on top of the helmet, also known as the ‘hook ‘em horns’ sign

U-turn – left hand makes circle in air over head

All bikers ride at their own risk.

 “Girls Gone Riding…for Charity” is looking forward to riding with each of you on Saturday 23 June!

Be a part of the excitement that is … “Girls Gone Riding...for Charity!”

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To learn more about Events by Brawin, please visit us at http://www.brawin.com 

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